Expo: REALBasic to support introspection

REALbasic, the cross-platform development software, now supports introspection—the ability to examine an object to determine what it is, what it knows, and what it’s capable of doing. Introspection support highlights REALbasic 2008 Release 1, announced by developer Real Software Tuesday.

Real called introspection the most heavily requested feature from its customers in recent years. “Adding introspection to our object-oriented language provides developers with a powerful tool,” Real CEO and president Geoff Pearlman said in a press release announcing the latest version of REALbasic. “With this new capability our users will be more productive and their applications will be more dynamic and adaptable.”

According to Real, Introspection gives programmers a great deal of flexibility and control. It enables developers to use a number of dynamic programming features like serialization for object storing, remote method invocation for data sharing and data binding for consistency when data values change.

In addition to introspection support, REALbasic 2008 Release 1 will feature 39 other minor improvements and two additional language features.

REALbasic 2008 Release 1 comes out in February; customers can get it at Real’s download page. Final pricing and system requirements have yet to be announced for the application.

Real Software also announced Tuesday that it plans to ship REAL SQL Server 2008 Release 1 during this week’s Macworld Expo. Highlights of the new version include better SQL standards compliance and enhanced PHP compatibility for OS X 10.5 as well as Linux-based platforms.

A single server with support for unlimited users costs $500; a server five-pack is available for $2,00 and a ten-pack costs $3,000.

Chris Barylick

Chris Barylick is an Apple-Certified Macintosh Technician living in the San Francisco Bay Area. In his 25 years of tinkering with Macs, he has accidentally lit two (and counting) hard drives on fire. He also wouldn't mind being Gonzo the Muppet when he finally grows up.More by Chris Barylick